Walking through the circus that was WCES '95 was like undergoing total neural-synaptic overload. I felt hard-pressed to just keep my head above water separating good sound from bad. Trying to piece together a coherent picture of the show, I jotted down the components in the best systems that I'd heard, and a few items popped up with astonishing regularity. One of these was Audio Research's single-chassis CD player, the CD-1.
What, a high-fidelity product from Magnavox? The company that 20 years ago had a reputation for building massive, polished-console boom-boxes and was scornfully referred to in audiophile circles as "Maggotbox"? Some important things have happened to Magnavox since those days. Mainly, it became a subsidiary of the Dutch Philips company, co-developer of the laser video disc and now the audio Compact Disc. The Magnavox CD players are actually made by Philips for US distribution by Magnavox.
John Atkinson, you were right the first time ("Letters," <I>Stereophile</I>, December 1997, p.17, footnote 1): Jeremy Bentham is, indeed, the famous English philosopher and legal theorist whose mummified remains are preserved at the University of London. Sitting in a large glass display case, Bentham has been holding court since his death in 1832. As you noted, Bentham looks deceptively like a waxwork. But this is because his head, in fact, <I>is</I> made of wax. The original, rumor has it, suffered through one very macabre rugby game played long ago by mischievous students.
For years now, Internet users willing to walk on the audio wild side have had access to millions of illicit music files via peer-to-peer file-trading services. But those who have tried to find locate of the commercial sources for online music files have found their choices limited.
On July 25, New York State Attorney General Elliot Spitzer announced that Sony BMG Entertainment had agreed to "stop making payments and providing expensive gifts to radio stations and their employees in return for 'airplay' for the company's songs."
Michael Brecker, the legendary tenor saxophonist, has been a staple in the recording scene for more than 30 years now—we were first bowled over by his work on drummer Billy Cobham's 1974 album <I>Crosswinds</I>, although we could have just as easily mentioned hundreds of titles where he supported other musicians as a first-tier studio player. Along with his brother, trumpeter Randy Brecker, he co-led the Brecker Brothers band in the 1970s and, since 1987, has released intelligent, challenging records as a headliner, including our favorite, 2001's <I>The Nearness of You: The Ballad Book</I> (Verve 549705 CD).
Several <A HREF="http://cgi.stereophile.com/cgi-bin/showoldvotes.cgi">recent surveys</A> on the <I>Stereophile</I> website have uncovered a surprising trend among audiophiles: Many of you are heading online to both used- and new-product vendors to make equipment purchases that have traditionally been made at specialty audio retailers.
Once again, audiophiles can help themselves and help others at the same time by participating in The Cable Company's 10th annual "Summer Against Hunger" campaign. <A HREF="http://www.fatwyre.com/">The Cable Company</A> and a wide cross-section of its vendors (listed below) have set up a program in which up to 10% of The Cable Company's August sales are donated to <A HREF="http://www.careusa.org/">CARE</A> and the <A HREF="http://www.theirc.org/">International Rescue Committee</A>, with contributions to be used to assist the worldwide disaster relief efforts of those humanitarian organizations. This year, the situation is more critical than ever.
If there is one thing I've learned in almost 28 years (ouch) of audio writing, it's that audience reaction is fickle. Sometimes readers will swallow the most contentious pronouncements without indigestion, only to choke on throwaway lines you've invested with little importance. It just goes to confirm that human communication involves senders and receivers, and they aren't always in synchrony.